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This week, Jews around the world will observe the
festival of “Lights,” the commemoration of the victory 2500 years ago of
the Jews of the Holy Land over Syrian and hellenizing oppressors.
What makes this ancient war so important that Jews
remember it every year in a rabbinic enactment? So many wars have been
fought by the Jewish people—what makes the long-ago war of the Maccabees
so unique in Jewish history? And what special significance does it hold at
a time when the Jews are once again threatened with extermination in their
own land?
The Maccabean War was fought on two fronts: against
the Syrian invaders who wanted to conquer Judea for the Seleucid empire,
and against their allies, the “hellenizing” Jews, who wanted to abandon
the faith of G-d’s Torah for the philosophy of the pagan Greeks. Modern
Israel faces an identical dilemma: from “Palestinians” who want the
extermination of the Jewish state, and from secular leftists in Israel who
want the obliteration of the Jewish character of the state.
What was the Miracle of Chanukah?
The Chanukah prayer goes like this:
For the miracles, and for the redemption, for
the mighty deeds and for the salvation and for the wonders which You
performed for our ancestors at this time:
In the days of Mattisyahu ben Johanan, the
Cohen Gadol (high priest), when the evil kingdom of Greece rose up against
Your People Israel, to force them to forget Your Torah and to violate the
laws of your desire. And You in Your great mercy, stood by them during
their time of distress. You fought their battles, judged their deeds, and
avenged the wrongs done to them.
You gave the mighty ones into the hands of the
mild, the numerous into the hands of the few, the impure into the hands of
the pure, and the sinners into the hands of the observers of Your Torah.
You revealed Your great and holy Name to the
world, and caused a great redemption and salvation of Your People Israel
to this very day.
And afterward Your children entered Your Holy
House, cleansed Your Temple and purified Your Sanctuary, and kindled
lights in Your holy courtyards, and ordained these eight days of Hanukkah
to give thanks and praise to Your Great Name.
The current situation in the Middle East looks grim
for Israel. Even the most optimistic projections predict that the Jewish
state vanish within the next 15-20 years as the already hostile Arab
population outnumbers and overwhelms the Jews until they become a minority
in their own country. Even if all the suicide attacks stopped today,
Israel’s enemies need to do nothing but continue to breed in order to
crowd the Jews out of the Holy Land.
The situation looked just as bleak for the priestly
Maccabees and their small band of Torah-loyal followers. The Syrians and
the hellenizing Jews had already overrun the Temple in Jerusalem and were
using it to worship the pagan deities of the Greeks, whose statues had
been set up there. Deputies of the hellenizers set up altars of pagan
worship throughout the Holy Land, including Modi’in, where Mattisyahu, the
son of the Cohen Gadol, lived with his five sons Shimon, Judah,
Elazar, Johanan and Jonathan. When a hellenizing Jew in Modi’in attempted
to sacrifice to the pagan idol, Mattisyahu struck him down righteous rage,
just as his ancestor Pinchas had done many centuries before (Numbers
25:7). Then he cried, “Mee l’Hashem elai!” (whoever is on the
side of the Lord, come to me!) Jews who were loyal to the Torah joined
Mattisyahu and his sons. They were called the Maccabees, an acronym
for the Hebrew verse Mi Kamocho Be’elim Ad-nai (Who is like You
among the (pagan) gods, O Lord!) which they placed on their shields.
Although vastly outnumbered, the Maccabees ultimately
prevailed against their enemies.
You gave the mighty ones into the hands of the
mild. The Maccabees were guided at all time by the laws of the
Bible governing warfare, so they could not fight treacherously or commit
atrocities like their enemies. But they prevailed. Whenever Israel wages
righteous warfare, she ultimately will prevail.
You gave the numerous into the hands of the
few. The Maccabees were a small band of “extremists,” vastly
outnumbered by their enemies, just as the Israelis and (within Israel) the
Torah-observant community are a minority in the Mideast. The Jewish people
have always been a minority among the nations:—14 million Jews against a
billion Christians and 1.5 billion Muslims. But against staggering odds,
they have prevailed and will continue to endure.
You gave the impure into the hands of the pure,
and the sinners into the hands of the observers of Your Torah. As
long as there are leaders in Israel who observe the commandments, who
remain loyal to G-d and are guided by His Torah, not by “popular opinion”
or “political correctness,” Israel will prevail.
Happy Chanukah!
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